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Meditations

The Truth is that Sharks Are Awesome

After a decade of die-hard vegetarianism, I`m now at the stage of gourmandism where I will eat almost anything without flinching, but some of the things that I won’t eat surprise people. Offal? Bring it. Horse? Sure. Shark? Not a chance.

It may not be something that you come across regularly on the menu, but the shark fin trade is still doing a brisk business and according to the Shark Truth website, 80 million sharks are killed every year.

If you’ve seen the documentary Shark Water, (even just watch the trailer for a taste), then you know how much close to extinction sharks are, and how important it is to start turning this around now. Shark Truth is a non-profit organization that is trying to “stop the soup” as their slogan says.

Coming up on November 19th, they are hosting an event at Wild Rice Restaurant from 8pm – 10pm. There will be snacks and cocktails to go with shark trivia and a talk by renowned researcher, IUCN Shark Specialist Group Co-Chair, Nick Dulvy. Tickets are $20 from their website. Hope to see you there. The sharks will thank you for it.

You know what? If sharks were responsibly hunted and killed, and their entire bodies used as food, then I wouldn’t be against eating shark.

Having just returned from China where shark fin soup is common, I find the current situation still alarming and completely offensive. I don’t know how any informed person could eat shark fin soup and not feel wracked with guilt.

Mark said it: “informed” consumer is the key. I grew up eating shark fin soup since I was a tiny kid in Thailand. Almost every wedding I ever went to served shark fin soup almost as part of the ceremony. Very few people ever talked about the things behind the scene. I for sure didn’t know about it till much later, and not many of my people seem to be well informed. Nor is there any obvious effort to educate the public in Thailand.

It’s going to take some serious effort because remember that tradition in Asian culture is hard to break, I have to guiltily admit that my reactionary response to shark fin soup is “yum” and then it takes a few more seconds before conscience would step in to say “I’ll pass.” So, to this I say good job to you all who are out there and making a difference.

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